Illustrated Theatre Production Guide delivers a step-by-step approach to the most prevalent and established theatre production practices, focusing on essential issues related to the construction of wooden, fabric, plastic, and metal scenery used on the stage. A must-have resource for both the community theatre worker who must be a jack of all trades and the student who needs to learn the fundamentals on his or her own, it covers the necessities in great detail, without bogging you down. Offering techniques and best-practice methods from an experienced industry expert, it will allow you to create a foundation on which to build a successful and resourceful career behind the scenes in theatre production.
This third edition has been completely restructured to more effectively lead you through the basics of stagecraft. Through detailed lessons and hundreds of drawings, author John Holloway offers you solutions to the problems that you’ll face every day in a production, from rigging to knot tying to drapery folding. New to this edition are guides to jobs in theatre, construction documentation, and video projection methods, with expanded information on thrust theatres, lighting, and audio and video practices.
- Step-by-step projects focus on construction methods for wooden, fabric, plastic, and metal scenery to cover all your construction needs
- Hundreds of unique hand-drawings illustrate lessons to give dimensional, detailed instruction for difficult construction practices
- Eco-friendly tips instruct on how to reuse and recycle props and set materials for a greener production
What You Will Find on This Website
Videos
Numerous instruction videos covering topics from lighting, rigging and knot tying, to curtains, tools, and woodworking, to construction documentation and working as a stagehand.Extras
Detailed Glossary and additional images.
Web Chapters
Chapters that were removed from the third edition and others that never appeared in print!
How Do You Make...?
Instructions on how to make various tools and items necessary in theatrical production.
Key Terms List
Lists of key terms for the book, broken up by chapters.
Green Tips
A selection of tips from the book for a more eco-friendly production. Reader submissions welcome!
John Holloway is a Full Professor in the Theatre Department of the University of Kentucky where he has taught for 31 years. He is an on-going freelancer involved in designing, engineering, and constructing stage scenery for television and theatre. He worked as stagehand and Technical Director for over 30 years, and has built scenery for over 300 plays, television shows, commercials, operas, and trade shows. He is a longstanding member of the professional stagehand’s union, IATSE, and served as the president of Local 346 for many years. He toured with the national touring companies of Grand Hotel (Tony Award winner, 1989), The Will Rogers Follies, and Camelot. He also works as a rigger and spot operator for rock concerts.